Current Position: Head of International Climate Finance Negotiations for the UK.

What propted your early interest in the environment?

About ten years ago, I read a book called Dead Heat: Global Justice and Global Warming by Tom Athanasiou and Paul Baer. It’s a short accessible summary of the science of climate change, and the scale of the challenge. I defy anyone to read it and not feel the urgent need to do something about climate change.

Describe your first attempt to 'save the planet':

I read ‘Dead Heat’ while at university, so my housemates bore the brunt of my early attempts to save the planet. Repeatedly turning off the heating during a harsh Scottish winter proved by far the least popular.